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On the several facets of personality assessment: The case of social acuity.

The present research employs a variety of methods to examine social acuity, the ability and inclination to perceive the psychological state of others and act accordingly. Sources of data include three self-report inventories (Self-Monitoring, Attributional Complexity, and Empathy), a direct measure of perceptual performance (the Profile of Nonverbal Sensitivity), and comprehensive Q-sort descriptions of personality provided by subjects peers and by the subjects themselves. The four measures of social acuity were found to be coherently interrelated; Self-Monitoring and Empathy were related to each other particularly closely. Examination of the Q-sort correlates, from both self-reports and peers' judgments, yielded an improved conceptual understanding of social acuity and demonstrated the close relationship between these measure and interpersonal effectiveness. The results are discussed in terms of the construct validity of social acuity and the usefulness of multiple methods and approaches in assessing personality.

Adult↗

A critique of Plomin and Foch's "A Twin Study of Objectively Assessed Personality in Childhood".

Plomin and Foch's (1980) study of objectively assessed personality in childhood is critiqued on five points: (a) conceptual validity of the measures, (b) stability of the measures for the population age range, (c) comparability of populations, (d) accuracy of literature review, and (e) appropriate interpretation of broad heritability data. The Plomin and Foch study contains major errors; it is theoretically and methodologically flawed. Their report is especially significant because it is representative of problems critical to the study of the genetic correlates of personality.

Child↗

Personality assessment by Initial-Letter Word-Association Test.

The case of a psychotic girl was described to show that personality assessment by the Initial Letter Word Association Test may be done by categorizing the subject's test associations according to the oral, anal, and phallic character traits. The similarity between the subject's test and dream contents was also studied. The kind of similarity found was not seen in the normal subjects.

Adult↗

Ethical issues in personality assessment in forensic psychology.

In this article we address several ethical issues of concern for psychologists who are engaged in personality assessment in forensic settings such as for courts or attorneys. The ethical issues reviewed include the role of the psychologist as an expert witness, matters of competence, informed consent, confidentiality, multiple relationships, and special issues related to billing. Emphasis is placed on how psychologists can provide useful information to the courts in a manner consistent with the American Psychological Association's Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, the Committee on Ethical Guidelines for Forensic Psychologist's Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychologists, and the APA's Guidelines for Child Custody Evaluations in Divorce Proceedings. The practical recommendations made in this article are consistent with the APA's Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct.

Confidentiality↗

Personality assessment: practice and teaching for the next decade.

This paper describes some loci for personality assessment practices in the next decade. There are new domains for description of Personality Disorders, stress and coping skills, and individual modernity and acculturation. An emphasis on psychological health assessment is consistent with primary and secondary intervention. A focus on competence and awareness of environmental demands leads to a rationale for assessment components of a psychological health evaluation. Education for the general public and training for professional assessors are relevant teaching goals. Competence, fairness, and an adequate repertoire of tools are requisite for professionals.

Journal Article↗

Dimensions of deception in personality assessment: the example of the MMPI-2.

The topic of deception in personality assessment is discussed along a number of dimensions relevant to clinical practice. The dimensions described are consistency versus accuracy of item endorsement, simulation versus dissimulation, genetic versus specific deception, crude versus sophisticated deception, intentional versus nonintentional deception, self-deception versus impression management, and selectivity versus inclusiveness, as these may be encountered using the revised version of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. The emphasis is placed on deceptive strategies as operations as distinct from the traditional categories of response style such as social desirability. Directions for future research are indicated.

Journal Article↗

Convergent validity of the personality assessment inventory: A study of emergency referrals in a correctional setting.

The Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) is a new generation multiscale inventory that is widely used in clinical settings. The current study examined its convergent validity with emergency referrals in a metropolitan correctional facility. A sample of 80 referrals completed two phases of an assessment study. As a measure of convergent validity, results on select PAI scales were compared to the Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (SADS), the Structured Interview of Reported Symptoms (SIRS), and the Suicide Probability Scale (SPS). Overall, results indicated moderate to good convergent validity for the following: (a) screening for feigned profiles, (b) establishing clinical correlates of common disorders, and (c) evaluating the potential for suicidal ideation.

Adult↗

Personality assessment and test interpretation of Mexican Americans: a critique.

Reviews the personality test assessment of Mexican Americans. Although there is a paucity of available research there are some indications that Mexican Americans differ in response patterning on projective devices. On objective instruments, problems involving fluency in English obscure the findings. Several recommendations are offered for increasing the efficiency of these instruments for use with Mexican American clients.

Acculturation↗

On the integration of personality assessment methods: the Rorschach and MMPI.

Despite being the most studied and used personality assessment tools, data from the Rorschach and MMPI generally disagree (Archer & Krishnamurthy, 1993a, 1993b). Independence is proposed to result from at least 3 factors: (a) the methods tap unique levels of personality, (b) personality has a complex organization, and (c) response styles generate considerable method variance that must be considered in nomothetic research. These ideas led to 5 hypotheses, each of which received support. Rorschach and MMPI response styles are uncorrelated, although response styles are quite consistent within a method family. MMPI-2 and Rorschach constructs of dysphoria, psychosis, or wariness are uncorrelated when response styles are ignored. However, robust convergent validity is evident when patients have similar response styles on each method (e.g., for dysphoria, M r = .59) and dysphoria is expressed in opposing ways on each method when response styles are discordant (i.e., M r = -.54). Data from the latter analyses were correlated with genuine clinical phenomena and implications were discussed for clinical practice and research.

Journal Article↗

The Borderline Syndrome Index: a validation study using the personality assessment schedule.

BACKGROUND: This study examines the validity and screening properties of the Borderline Syndrome Index--BSI (developed in the USA) for categories of the Personality Assessment Schedule--PAS (developed in the UK). METHOD: Patients were recruited by case control sampling. Chance corrected agreement between instruments and screening properties of the BSI were calculated. RESULTS: The BSI proved a moderately sensitive but non-specific screen. Questionnaire scores were highly correlated with symptom measures. CONCLUSIONS: The results do not support the validity of the BSI or its use as a screening instrument. BSI scores may be distorted by current symptoms.

Adult↗

The factor structure of the Personality Assessment Inventory-Borderline Features (PAI-BOR) Scale in a nonclinical sample.

We evaluated the fit of Morey's (1991) proposed 4-factor structure on Personality Assessment Inventory-Borderline Features Scale (PAI-BOR; Morey, 1991) items in a sample of approximately 5,000 nonclinical participants. The proposed model did not fit the data well. Results from a series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses suggested that a 6-factor model provided the best fit to the PAI-BOR item covariances.

Adolescent↗

Ethical dilemmas in personality assessment courses: using the classroom for in vivo training.

In this article, we argue that the student's first lessons in ethical decision making in personality assessment are in those assessment courses that have a practice component. In these courses, the student has an opportunity to experience in vivo how ethical problems are identified, addressed, and resolved. The faculty member's demonstration of a process wherein the ethical principles activated are highlighted and explored, will enable students to internalize a model for addressing future dilemmas. Four particular ethical situations are considered: (a) the students' procurement of personal experience with personality testing, (b) the identification of assessment participants, (c) the development of informed consent procedures for assessment participants, and (d) classroom presentations. This discussion does not provide concrete solutions to ethical problems but offers a consideration of the relevant ethical principles that any adequate solution must encompass.

Confidentiality↗

Detecting socially desirable responding with the Personality Assessment Inventory: the Positive Impression Management scale and the Defensiveness Index.

In order to assess the effectiveness of the validity scales from the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991), 111 Introductory Psychology students completed the Positive Impression Management scale (PIM) and the Defensiveness Index (DEF) from the PAI along with the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR; Paulhus, 1984) under two instructional sets: 'forthright" and "fake good." Both PAI measures of socially desirable responding were superior to the BIDR scales at identifying protocols written under the fake good instructions. Contrary to Morey (1991), the results from this study support the use of a raw score of 18 as the cut-off on the PIM scale rather than 23. Using 18 as the criterion, 85.1% of cases were correctly classified. A cut-off score for the DEF (5) was derived and tested. Using this criterion resulted in the correct classification of 83.3% cases. A discriminant function that incorporated both the PAI indices produced no substantial improvement in classification accuracy.

Adult↗

A discussion of modern versus traditional psychometrics as applied to personality assessment scales.

Item response theory (IRT) methods are used by large testing firms, state agencies, and school districts to construct, analyze, and score most major aptitude, achievement, proficiency, entrance, and professional licensure exams. Personality assessment, in contrast, has not generally adopted these more powerful, modern psychometric techniques. We evaluate the possible role of IRT in the personality domain by highlighting key areas in which IRT and traditional methods differ. Although we conclude that IRT has a significant role to play in future personality measurement, there are many systemic and technical barriers to its routine application.

Forecasting↗

Effects of information about validity scales on underreporting of symptoms on the personality assessment inventory.

We investigated the effects of information about validity scales on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) on underreporting of symptoms in a college student population. A group of participants completing the PAI under the standard instructions was compared to two groups of participants who had been instructed and given incentives to underreport symptoms. One of the underreporting groups was given a brief warning about the presence of scales designed to detect respondents attempting to present an unrealistically favorable impression. Results suggested that underreporting scales on the PAI are effective in discriminating standard profiles from those completed by uncoached underreporting participants but are less effective in discriminating standard profiles from those produced by participants who have been warned about the underreporting scales. The findings suggest that coaching may enable some respondents to underreport symptoms without detection.

Journal Article↗

Personality assessment of substance-dependent patients in a therapeutic community.

The design and implementation of a personality assessment system for severely substance-dependent men in a therapeutic community (TC) are described. The system was designed from a treatment utility perspective (Hayes, Nelson, & Jarrett, 1987) and uses the Personality Research Form E (Jackson, 1984) to provide each patient with feedback (a) describing his normal personality traits, (b) predicting his probable pattern of adjustment to the treatment setting, and (c) prescribing specific actions he can take to address potentially problematic behaviors. Discussing the the results with the patient helps him cope with the TC. Reviewing the assessment results with the staff promotes their empathy for the patient as a person whose behavior can be understood as an interaction of his personality with the specific demands of the TC rather than seeing the patient in exclusively pathological terms. Specific suggestions for behavior change guide both the patient and the staff and are potentially useful in various treatment settings.

Case Management↗

Identifying positive dissimulation by substance-abusing individuals on the Personality Assessment Inventory: a cross-validation study.

The accuracy of a classification equation (which combined scores on the Drug Problems, Alcohol Problems, and Positive Impression scales from the Personality Assessment Inventory [PAI], Morey, 1991), developed by Fals-Stewart (1996) to identify test-taking response sets among substance-abusing individuals, was evaluated. As in the Fals-Stewart (1996) study, three groups of participants completing the PAI were assessed: (a) substance-abusing patients administered the inventory under standard instructions (n = 25); (b) substance-abusing patients asked to respond defensively (n = 25) combined with a group of individuals suspected of abusing drugs, referred for an evaluation by the criminal justice system, who had reasons to conceal their drug use (n = 25); and (c) non-substance-abusing respondents administered the test under standard instructions (n = 25). Significant validity shrinkage in the classification equation was found when applied to the new sample; only 68% of participants were correctly classified into their respective groups, compared to 82% of participants correctly assigned in the Fals-Stewart (1996) investigation.

Adult↗